An Exceptional Reunion
by BlueSuedeShoes
Summary: Sequel to An Exceptional Young Woman  read that first .  A rewrite of the season 6 episode Reunion according to the Exceptional Universe.   rating subject to drastic change
1. Chapter 1

**The much sought-after sequel to An Exceptional Young Woman (results of my post-finale Livejournal poll). Yes, you do need to read that story first. Currently it can only be found on LiveJournal, and there is a link to it on my profile page. However, it is my intention to post it over here as well in the near future.**

**I expect this sequel to be about 2-3 short chapters long, but I can't make any guarantees about how quickly I will be updating.**

**Enjoy! As always, thank you for reading, and thank you for the tremendous response An Exceptional Young Woman received last year.**

**BlueSuede**

**P.S. The opening monologue/dream sequence is from Tennessee William's _A Streetcar Named Desire._  
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><p><em>May I speak plainly? Well, if you'll forgive me, he's common. You can't have forgotten that much of our bringing up, Stella, to just suppose that any part of a gentleman is in his nature! Not one particle, no! Oh, if he was just–ordinary! Just plain–but good and wholesome, but–no. There's something downright–bestial about him! You're hating me saying this aren't you? <em>

_Well, he acts like an animal, has an animal's habits! Eats like one, moves like one, talks like one! There's even something–sub-human–something not quite to the stage of humanity yet! Yes, something–ape-like about him, like one of those pictures I've seen in–anthropological studies! _

_Thousands and thousands of years have passed him by, and there he is–Stanley Kowalski–survivor of the stone age! Bearing the raw meat home from the kill in the jungle! And you–you here–waiting for him! Maybe he'll strike you or maybe grunt and kiss you! That is, if kisses have been discovered yet! Night falls and all the other apes gather! There in front of the cave, all grunting like him, and swilling and gnawing and hulking! His poker night you call it–this party of apes! Somebody growls–some creature snatches at something–the fight is on! _

_Maybe we are a long way from being made in God's image, but Stella–my sister–there has been some progress since then! Such things as art–as poetry and music–such kinds of new light have come into the world since then! In some kind of people some tenderer feelings have had some little beginning! That we have got to make grow! And cling to, and hold as our flag! _

_In this dark march toward whatever it is we are approaching...don't–don't hang back with the brutes!_

Oliver stared at the fifteen-year-old Chloe standing on the stage, sweat beading on his forehead as she preached her warning to Claire and Diana and everyone foolish enough to think something worthwhile existed in him. Her eyes glued on him, filled with cold, staggering hatred. Slowly he melted into his chair, as if her glare had the power to obliterate him, to make him exactly as small and worthless and despicable as she believed him to be...as he really was.

Her monologue ended and she kept her disdainful, unfeeling eyes locked on him before adding icily, "I will _never_ love you."

"NO!"

Oliver shot up in bed, gasping for breath, clutching his chest as he accidentally fell out of the bed altogether, tumbling to the floor in a tangle of sheets.

His face met the carpet and he swore as reality washed over him.

That was the fifth nightmare this week.

He knew the reason. The squirming feeling in his gut was reminder enough that tomorrow was the tenth year reunion for his graduating class at Excelsior. He was grateful that Chloe wasn't around this evening to witness him succumbing to fear once again. He'd carefully avoided letting her know about the anxiety he was experiencing. He wasn't sure Chloe fully understood how unpleasant his last couple of years at that school had been. The two of them had barely spoken for most of their time there. Come to think of it, not being around her had definitely contributed to his misery. He had missed her, had been frustrated that she refused to be honest with him–however much he currently understood the reason behind all that. But the worst part had been seeing Lex everyday. Passing him in the halls, knowing, down in his gut, that he had contributed to the mental breakdown Lex had had.

He still had nightmares about Duncan Allenmeyer sometimes, especially when he'd been spending too much time thinking about Excelsior. It hadn't taken him long after graduating to drift apart from Alden and Geoff. All he wanted was to forget about everything that reminded him of what he had almost become: selfish, spoiled, arrogant, and cruel.

Not to mention they reminded him that he had turned Lex Luthor into the mentally unbalanced villain that he was.

He made himself sick.

Most days he was able to forget his once-connection to Lex. He had pushed back memories of his days as a bully to the furtherst, darkest corner of his mind and convinced himself that Lex would have turned out that way anyway, that there was nothing anyone could have done to prevent it. But with the reunion looming ever-nearer, he could almost envision his sixteen-year-old self taunting a young, helpless Lex, mocking and making his life miserable.

Back when Oliver had been the villain and Lex the victim.

_All he wanted was acceptance. And I refused to give him that._

All of a sudden a buzzer went off and Oliver realized he'd woken from his nightmare only ten minutes before his alarm was set to go off. He rubbed a hand over his face, exhausted, wondering how in the world he was going to get through today.

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><p>Chloe smoothed her dress in front of the mirror, checking herself from each angle.<p>

"I like the other one better," Lois said behind her.

Chloe sighed. "Me, too." She walked back to the closet and pulled the teal dress off the door then back to the mirror, draping it in front of her. She nodded to herself. "Yeah, definitely this one."

Lois smiled, watching her cousin fret about clothes for once in her life. "So, you scared that all the CEOs and heiresses are going to look down their noses at you?"

Chloe chuckled, glancing at Lois in the mirror. "Something like that. It was tough going to school there, you know." _Though tougher on some than others,_ she thought sadly, her mind's eye flitting to a young man in a shabby uniform, accompanied by his inexplicably bald friend. She shook thoughts of Duncan Allenmeyer from her head. Today was a day to be happy, to catch up with old friends.

"Whatever happened to those two girls you were such good friends with?" Lois asked. "What were their names again?"

"Claire and Diana," Chloe replied, all traces of sadness leaving her face. "We still keep in touch by e-mail, but they lead such busy lives...it's difficult to find time to visit. I haven't seen them since..." she trailed off, remembering the last time she'd seen them.

"_Chloe, honey? Open up. We know you're in there. The cute farmboy told us."_

_Chloe tilted her head slightly, surprised to hear the sound of Claire's voice on the other side of the door. "Claire?" she asked in surprise._

"_Who else, darling? Let us in. We come bearing gifts."_

_Chest tight, Chloe put down the dishtowel she had been using to dry a few mugs with and headed for the door to let in Claire and Diana. Claire instantly flung her arms tightly around Chloe. "Oh, sweetie, how are you? Are you holding up all right?"_

_There was no use hiding the fact that Chloe had been crying. Her eyes were dry and red, and her cheeks bore treacherous tear-streaks. She sighed as Claire released her. "I'm fine," she said as she turned to give Diana a more delicate hug, as she was holding a tray of coffee and a paper bag that promised muffins of some variety. "What are you two doing here?" she added, a bit confused by the sudden visit._

_Claire scoffed, entering Chloe's apartment and seating herself on the couch. "You're joking, right? We watch the news, Chloe. And we both have _the DailyPlanet_ special ordered, by the way. We read the obituary you wrote, you poor dear." She looked at Chloe sympathetically. Diana had busied herself in the kitchen, unloading the muffins onto a plate, handing Chloe her coffee. She put away the mugs Chloe had been drying and disappeared, reappearing moments later with a broom to start sweeping the kitchen for Chloe._

"_Diana," Chloe said with a faint tickle of laughter in her throat, "that's not necessary. Come sit down."_

"_It's no use, Chlo. Some people send cards. Some make casseroles. Diana's way of comforting is to help clean."_

_Diana just shrugged at Chloe, giving her a meaningful look, and Chloe sighed, recognizing a losing battle. She squeezed Diana's hand gratefully and told her, "Come sit down when you're done?"_

_Diana nodded, smiling comfortingly. "Of course."_

"_Anyway," Claire continued her explanation, "it was the weirdest thing. I was asking Diana if she had heard from you recently because we both figured this would probably hit you pretty hard after–"_

_Chloe's eyes flashed with warning and Claire–for once–faltered slightly._

"_Um...after everything. And then, out of nowhere, I got a call from Mr. Christopher."_

_Chloe choked on her coffee._

"_You remember the drama teacher, right Chloe? Well, I hadn't heard from him since school, but out of nowhere he calls me–I don't even know how he got my number–and tells me that he thinks Diana and I should go see you because you're not doing so great. Are you in touch with him?" she asked curiously._

_Chloe took a nervous, guilty swig of coffee, thinking of her outburst just the day before, yelling at Mr. Christopher and Mr. Williams about how they needed to fix everything and bring Oliver back. She swallowed tightly. "A little."_

_Claire nodded, surveying Chloe speculatively. "Huh. He always was weirdly intuitive, wasn't he?" She tugged Chloe onto the couch with her so she could wrap her arms around her in a comforting hug. "Diana and I have decided to stay in Metropolis for a week," she announced to Chloe's surprise. "Now, you could go make your best friends in the whole world stay in a hotel somewhere," she sighed dramatically, "_or_..."_

_Chloe chuckled, and her face almost hurt as if she had forgotten how to smile, "Of course you guys can stay with me. Any time." She hugged Claire back, finally accepting comfort._

"_Do you have any bleach?" Chloe heard Diana ask from the kitchen, and Chloe sighed, realizing that her apartment was probably going to be spotless by the end of this visit whether she liked it or not._

"_I'll give it to you if you come sit with me for ten minutes and catch me up on your life," Chloe bargained, and Diana obligingly joined them on the couch, gentle smile in tact as she took Chloe's hand._

Chloe shook herself from her thoughts, swallowing tightly as she realized she hadn't seen Claire or Diana since Oliver had been shipwrecked. They still sent e-mails and Christmas cards with updates, but it wasn't the same as seeing them in person.

"So teal dress," Lois said, getting up from Chloe's bed to head for the closet, "silver shoes," she continued, tossing the shoes onto Chloe's bed, then heading to Chloe's dresser and jewelry box, "and silver choker from boyfriend-extraordinaire."

Chloe grinned at Lois's assessment as she offered up the necklace. "Perfect, Lo, thanks."

"I still can't believe you went to school with Lex Luthor," Lois mused.

"You can believe I'm dating Oliver Queen but not that I went to school with Lex Luthor?" she questioned.

"Well, Oliver's really..._human_," Lois pointed out. "Lex is so..." she trailed off, shuddering.

Chloe's face became more serious. "You know, Lex wasn't always like he is now. He used to be a lot more..." she searched for a word. Tortured? "Well, approachable."

Lois snorted.

"I'm serious. He had a really rough childhood." Duncan's smiling face flashed through her mind, followed by the closed, disdainful expression of Lionel Luthor. She turned her eyes sadly to the mirror and started unzipping the pink dress she'd been trying on.

"Hmmm," Lois replied noncommittally. "If you say so. I still can't picture him as a little kid, though. Let alone a teenager."

Chloe's throat constricted and she saw Lex's outraged face, shouting obscenities at her after Duncan's memorial service.

Her fingers fumbled with the zipper, and Lois got up to help her with it.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: If you were sad that there wasn't a lot of Chloe/Oliver interaction in this chapter, I promise there will be much more in the next segment.**

–2–

"Chloe!" Lana said in surprise, catching sight of her long-ago friend. "My God, I forgot you went to school here, too."

Chloe shrugged, giving her friend a hug and laughing. "Hard to picture me here, isn't it?"

Lana smiled, "It doesn't exactly scream 'Chloe Sullivan,' does it?" Beside her, Lex made no real acknowledgement, only tolerating the conversation for the moment, counting the seconds until it was over. As he had explained to Lana, he came to these events for business purposes, not for any sentiment or nostalgia.

"Oh, I don't know about that," Oliver's voice chimed in from behind, and Lex gritted his teeth. "She made quite a mark here."

"Is that so?" Lana asked, looking at Lex.

"Chloe starred in a play her first year," he said.

"That's right," Lana said, thinking back. "I think I remember…" she paused awkwardly, "being told about that," she finished, clearly not wanting to mention Clark. Chloe raised an eyebrow.

"It wasn't a huge deal."

Oliver laughed. "It was to me. It meant I had an excuse to kiss you back when you still hated me."

Lana raised an eyebrow. "Hated you?" she echoed, surprised by the statement.

"Ollie wasn't exactly charming when I first met him," Chloe teased.

Lex smiled bitterly. "Oh, I think I remember him having charmed most of the school."

Chloe swallowed tightly and silently thanked Lex for leaving it at that. She knew what he was hinting at, but at least he hadn't said anything really provocative.

Oliver's jaw ticked, however, and he said meaningfully, "I'd say we all turned out all right, wouldn't you?"

Lex deigned no answer. "Lana, I think I see a professor of mine that I'd love for you to meet. If you'll excuse us," he said curtly to Chloe and Oliver, guiding Lana away.

Oliver's eyes followed him as he departed, and Chloe rubbed his arm soothingly. "Let it go," she whispered. He closed his eyes briefly and then seemed to straighten his shoulders a bit. Lex Luthor and Duncan Allenmeyer were the mistake he would never escape.

At that moment they were approached by a pair of young men, and Chloe had to blink a few times. "Oh…my…"

"God," Oliver finished.

"Ollie!" the young man with sandy brown hair raised a scotch glass in Oliver's direction, and Oliver felt a mixture of pleasure and panic at seeing his old friend. The result was something resembling nausea.

"Alden," Chloe greeted, moving forward to greet him with a peck on the cheek. "Geoff," she added, noting the dark-haired man on his left and planting a light kiss on his cheek as well. "It's been ages."

"Chloe," Alden grinned teasingly. "How's the farm?"

She scoffed, swatting his shoulder. "I wouldn't know. I live in Metropolis, you fool," she joked back.

Oliver joined them and clinked glasses with Alden. "Sorry I never got back to that message you left me," he said, attempting to be amicable.

Geoff rolled his eyes. "Dude, he totally blew you off, didn't he."

"Yep," Alden said, smirking. "We'll forgive you, though, Ollie, since you brought the prom queen with you."

"You were prom queen?" Oliver asked questioningly.

Chloe turned bright red. "How do you know about that?" she asked. "No one's supposed to know about that. You'd all graduated that year."

Geoff lifted a shoulder and Alden grinned wickedly. "Please. You thought you could keep something like that from Claire? She probably rigged the vote for you or something."

"I can't believe you didn't tell me you were prom queen," Oliver mused.

"We weren't exactly best friends at the time, remember?" she asked.

"Yeah, was that before or after you decided to play Gilligan's Island?" Geoff nudged Oliver.

"Before," Oliver said dryly and Chloe rolled her eyes, chuckling.

"Yeah, we were sorry to hear you died, man," Alden said and no one could tell whether he was being funny on purpose or not. "I was depressed for a whole week."

"How charming."

"Have you seen Claire, yet?" Geoff asked, and Chloe quirked an eyebrow at him, the corner of her mouth twitching. She had suspicions about Geoff that had just been confirmed. He and Diana had gone separate ways after graduating, but she always thought he might carry a torch for her anyway. He knew that wherever Claire could be found, so could Diana.

Chloe just shook her head demurely. "I haven't yet, no."

"Whatever happened with you and Claire?" Oliver asked Alden, and Alden shrugged easily.

"She dropped my sorry butt when we got to college."

"Really?" a voice asked behind Alden, and everyone started. "Because I remember something to do with a pair of twins and some shots of tequila. _Then_ I dropped your sorry butt."

Alden and Geoff turned to see a beautiful pair of women. Claire, who had always been a vibrant girl, had certainly grown into a vibrant woman. Dressed in gold silk, her red hair had grown out, waving gently in a vintage 1940s style, and she wore the makeup to match: smoky eyes and scarlet lips. She could have just watched off the red carpet. Diana, on the other hand, was still all dark lashes and demure smiles, her cheeks faintly pink tinged and her dark starry eyes turned down in shyness. She wore ice blue and had her dark hair piled up elegantly, stray curls tumbling down her neck. Geoff swallowed nervously.

"Claire! Diana!" Chloe exclaimed, and Claire squealed in delight, throwing her arms excitedly around Chloe.

"Chloe, oh my God, you look completely fabulous!"

Chloe laughed. "I could say the same about you." She turned to give Diana an affectionate hug and whispered that she looked stunning as well.

"What have you ladies been doing all these years?" Oliver asked interestedly, wondering what had become of the infamous pair. He had always been fond of Alden's girlfriend and her best friend, long before he had met Chloe even.

"Well, _Diana_ is living in Malibu. She's going to be in _another_ movie that starts filming this summer. Because she's so fabulous." Claire's lips curved into a proud smile as she looked at her friend. Diana's blush deepened. "And _Chloe_," Claire continued, "is making headlines at the world-famous Daily Planet," she added. "Like we all knew she would."

Chloe grinned. Same old Claire. "I believe the question pertained to you, Claire, not me. Claire has her own fashion line," Chloe explained to the rest of the group.

"Yes, Alden, I believe you're wearing one of my suits," Claire said, raising an amused eyebrow.

Alden played dumb, lifting his arms slightly and examining his suit. "Is it? I had no idea. The guy in the store said it was good. That's all I know."

"Uh huh," Oliver said wryly, smirking.

"What about the dress you're wearing?" Chloe asked, eyeing the shimmering garment.

Claire beamed. "As a matter of fact, this is one of my own creations." She spun around to model it for them. "I'm rather fond of it."

"It looks lovely, Claire," Oliver said.

"Why thank you," she said, charmed. "So was that Lex Luthor I saw you talking to earlier?" she asked, glancing around to see if she could spot their follically challenged friend. "There was a very pretty girl with him."

"Lana Lang," Chloe supplied. "A friend of mine from Smallville, actually."

"Man, what's in the water in your town?" Geoffrey asked. "You can't all be that good looking."

Chloe rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, Lex seems to have done all right for himself," Alden said with a twinge of sarcasm in his voice. "Something else having the whole gang here, isn't it? Everybody except Duncan, that is," he added, and suddenly the cheerful group was silent and tense.

Oliver pulled the scotch glass out of Alden's hands just as he was raising it to his lips. "Okay, I think you've had enough."

Alden looked up in surprise. "Oh, what, like you guys weren't thinking about–"

"That's enough," Chloe said shortly.

Alden rolled his eyes and skulked away.

Claire's eyes followed him with evident sadness. "Ladies and gentlemen: Alden."

They nodded in vague agreement, and the girls broke away from the group to chat with one another while Oliver and Geoff caught up.

"We should all go out to dinner tonight," Claire was saying as Diana nodded in agreement. "Although then again, maybe tomorrow would be better. When Alden's feeling more…less…"

"Less of an ass?" Diana supplied simply.

Chloe had opened her mouth to respond when a hand gripped her arm. "Chloe, I need to talk to you."

"Mr. Williams!" Chloe said, turning in surprise. "Oh wow, how are you?"

But her delight at seeing her old teacher quickly faded at the expression on his face. "Chloe, you've got to get Alden away."

"What?" she asked, just as there was a sudden scream and gasp from several people. She looked around wildly until she spotted Alden, looking shocked at a piece of concrete on the ground. Mr. Williams hand shoved her forward and Chloe did the first thing she could think of: scream. "ALDEN MOVE!"

Alden, hearing Chloe's shriek, reacted on instinct and threw himself onto the ground, a sword from the statue on the roof crashing to the ground, still managing to pin his leg to the ground rather than spearing him through the chest as it had nearly done, twisting freakishly in air. Alden let out a agonized scream, and one to match went through the crowd.

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><p>"How's he doing?" Mr. Williams asked Chloe when she left the hospital room.<p>

Her face was pale but serious. "He's in a fair amount of pain, but the doctor says he'll be fine. Oliver and Claire are both in there with him for the moment." She glanced around nervously and ushered Mr. Williams and Mr. Christopher into an empty room. Once inside she rounded on them. "What happened back there? Why didn't you warn me sooner?"

The graying teachers shot each other a look before answering.

"He didn't see it coming," Mr. Christopher said. "At least, not until about one minute before it happened. Alden was about to die there, Chloe."

Chloe registered all of this information with no small amount of anxiety. Finally, slowly, "What do you mean, you didn't see it coming? You see everything coming."

But Mr. Williams was shaking his head. "Not this."

"Chloe," Mr. Christopher said seriously, "I think you should sit down. There's something we need to tell you."

Chloe looked from one guilty face to the next and swallowed thickly. She sat down on the hospital bed and looked up expectantly. "Hit me," she said.

Mr. Christopher gave Mr. Williams one of those looks that Chloe had long ago learned meant that he was searching the other man's thoughts. With a brief nod, he spoke first. "Duncan Allenmeyer is alive."

Silence pounded in Chloe's ears. "I'm–I'm sorry, _what_?"

"He's alive," Mr. Williams sighed, rubbing his temple. "Alive but brain-dead. Or so we thought."

"What?"

Mr. Christopher fielded that one. "I haven't heard so much as a hint of a brainwave from young Mr. Allenmeyer in over a decade. Until today. All of a sudden…" he frowned, gathering his own thoughts. "All of a sudden I detected something from him, like he was screaming in anger, drowning out everyone else. But as far as I could tell, he wasn't anywhere near that reunion. I generally have to be in the same immediate vicinity as someone to tune into their thoughts. And It has been many, many years since I was unable to tune someone out. I've had control on what I tune into for a long time."

Chloe's mind reeled as she jumped from one thing to another. "So what…what does that mean?"

"Meteor rock," they said together.

"What?"

"Meteor rock. It's the only thing either of us has ever known to change the future. Like your expulsion from Smallville High, for instance," Mr. Williams explained.

"Although this is the first time it's ever interfered with my abilities. Unless you include that I can't hear Mr. Kent's thoughts."

"You can't hear–okay, sorry, main plot. So you think somehow Duncan has been infected by meteor rock?" Chloe asked.

"Yes," Mr. Williams said as Mr. Christopher nodded. "Chloe, if he's allowed to continue, he'll probably go after more than just Alden, wouldn't you agree?"

Chloe's mind flashed to the faces of all of her old friends–every one of whom harbored guilt over the death of Duncan Allenmeyer. She nodded. "But what's stopping him from taking them all out right now?" she whispered with a shiver of fear.

"We don't know."

There was a long pause as the wheels in Chloe's mind turned. "Okay. I need you to tell me where he's staying. And then I have to go talk to Oliver about this. He's the only one who will be able to keep his friends safe. And I should probably put Clark on red alert as well."


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Well, judging by the small response to the last chapter, I'm guessing the sequel was a bit of a let down for most people. It's true what they say, I suppose: the sequel is never better than the original. lol I guess there's a reason I rarely do follow-ups.**

**Either way, thank you to those people who read and reviewed; sorry if any of you were disappointed. I hope the final segment here at least lives up to your expectations! :)**

**Also, please note that I didn't not include much of the action because it would have mostly consisted of retelling the episode Reunion, which would have been more tedious than anything. If you don't remember much about the episode, give the Smallville Wiki page a try.  
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><p>–3–<p>

"I can't believe Duncan Allenmeyer is dead. Again."

Claire looked across the table at Alden and raised an eyebrow. "Tactful as always, Alden, dear."

Diana shook her head and took a sip of her martini. Everyone else at the table more or less followed suit.

Chloe had found Duncan Allenmeyer in his vegetative state…or lack thereof. She and Oliver had given each other a debrief earlier that evening. She had explained the Kryptonite cocktail–his latest experimental treatment–that had allowed Duncan to seek telepathic revenge on those he deemed responsible for his death, and Oliver's electromagnetic arrow had payed for itself in spades by counteracting the meteor juiced brainwaves that had attacked him and Lex in the same room. Geoff had had a close call, but Mr. Williams had texted in a warning just in the nick of time, allowing Oliver to stop Geoff from getting in the car that had exploded before their very eyes.

All in all, it had been a close call, but other than Alden's broken leg–which Claire stoutly (but good naturedly) maintained was karma–no one had been seriously hurt. Chloe found it amusing that while Claire kept claiming Alden had deserved the leg cast, she had been the one to hover anxiously outside of his hospital room every minute until his release.

Chloe had accompanied Oliver to Lex's mansion that evening and watched in silent dismay as Lex threw Oliver's apology back in his face, no matter that Oliver had saved his life and expressed sincere regret for the way he had treated Lex in school. She looked upon the man with sad eyes, thinking what a bitter soul he must have to become the man he was today. He hadn't even acknowledged Chloe's presence as they both turned to leave, except to call after her that he was sorry to see her taste in men hadn't improved since high school.

Oliver had been right about one thing: While Oliver had spent the last several years doing his best to scrub the blood off of his hands, Lex's hands just kept getting bloodier.

And now, a day after the reunion, the six friends sat in a large private booth at an expensive restaurant, having the kind of reunion they deserved.

Chloe's eyes were on Geoff and Diana who were talking quietly to one another. Diana, to Chloe's surprise, did not have her dark lashes turned down as she spoke, but instead was meeting Geoff's eyes earnestly. Perhaps the near death experience had reminded the pair of what was important, Chloe mused. The thought made her turn to Oliver, and she reached for his hand under the table.

"So when are you two going to get married?" Claire demanded, causing Oliver to choke on his drink.

Chloe blushed embarrassedly as Oliver stammered and the boys laughed.

"Yeah, c'mon, Ollie. I can't believe you haven't made an honest woman out of her yet," Alden clapped Oliver on the back. "I'd be worried she might take a look at Geoff here and run off with him," he winked.

"No time like the present," Geoff agreed, smirking in the embarrassed couple's direction.

Diana just smiled.

"We…"

"Are doing just fine, thank you," Chloe rescued Oliver. "We've been taking things slowly."

Alden snorted and Claire elbowed him.

"I think Oliver knows what he wants and when he wants it," Diana said pleasantly, and the whole table stared at her. Somehow, whenever Diana spoke to a whole roomful of people, it always seemed to leave them all shocked.

Oliver's mind darted to a certain blue Tiffany's box that had been residing in his coat pocket for weeks. He'd decided months ago that the Excelsior Reunion was a mark of the fact that it was about time he asked Chloe to move in with him. Interestingly enough, his mind hadn't taken much more than an hour to jump from moving in together to getting married. He'd shrugged, grabbed his wallet, and headed for the jewelry store.

All of which Chloe was conveniently ignorant of, but which Diana seemed to sense like it was a second nature.

"I'm sure he does," Claire agreed. "But don't make us wait too long. And Chloe, I'll never forgive you if you don't let me design your wedding gown. Just remember that. I don't care if you simply _must_ make your cousin your Maid of Honor–because I'm sure you will–but _I_ get to design the gown."

Chloe laughed nervously. "Claire, you're forgetting that Oliver hasn't proposed," she reminded her friend.

Claire just waved a dismissive hand. "Details," she said, taking a bite of filet mignon.

Oliver gave a nervous laugh.

"What about you, Claire? I heard rumors of an impending engagement to an Italian dignitary last winter. Whatever happened to him? I expected to see him here."

Claire laughed sparklingly. "Darling Benito. He was a doll, wasn't he? But we were never serious about one another. The media just thought we looked pretty on the covers of magazines and decided to make our relationship out to be more than it was. Can you really imagine me with a dignitary? Or anyone dignified, for that matter? I need wild and fun. No, not you, Alden," she cut him off before he could make any suggestions on the matter.

"Oh, Claire, when will you remember you're desperately in love with me?"

"When I find out it was your evil twin who was caught in the lounge with the tequila and the Carlos twins."

Diana giggled and Alden failed to look subdued. "I was young and foolish. When will you ever forgive a man his sins, Claire?"

"When he stops _being _young and foolish?" Claire answered easily.

The group laughed, and Alden joined them, not really as hurt as he pretended to be.

* * *

><p>"Have I mentioned lately that I love you?" Chloe sighed, snuggling into Oliver's side on the couch, her stilettos abandoned on the floor.<p>

"Always nice to hear," Oliver admitted tiredly, tilting her face up to kiss her.

Chloe felt the familiar ache building in her thighs and she deepened the kiss greedily, threading a hand through his hair. She turned her head to the side and he brushed his lips over her throat, causing her to shiver with desire. "You are impossibly good at that."

"Nice to know you still think I've got it," he teased.

She laughed at him, burying her face in his neck. "Please. You've always made me weak in the knees."

"Oh _really_," he said, looking at her slyly.

"Well, not _always_," she caught herself, hastening to correct her statement. "I mean, obviously the first time you kissed me I went through an entire bottle of mouthwash," she said, referring to the time they had gotten into a shouting match that had ended with Oliver laying one on her before storming out of the room.

"Oh no," Oliver said, smirking maddeningly. "You finally admitted it. You've been head over heels for me since we first met. I knew it. I knew you wanted me."

"You're so arrogant."

"But right," he added, clearly enjoying himself, even as she playfully shoved his shoulder and rolled her eyes, doing her best to conceal a smile.

"I don't know what I ever saw in you," she said, starting to get off the couch. Oliver quickly caught her wrist and tugged her down onto his lap.

"Oh you're not getting away that easily," he warned, claiming her lips again, his hands grazing her back, his left hand settling just beneath her breast, leaving her frustrated and aching for more.

"Ollie," she whined into his mouth and he smirked.

"Do I hear an admittance of defeat?" he asked.

"Never," she said stubbornly.

In response, Oliver suddenly pinned her beneath him on the couch. "That so. I bet I can make you say 'uncle' first," he warned with obvious pleasure.

Chloe moaned, knowing he would be as good as his word. They had played that game before. She never won. …then again, maybe she did. "I was thinking something a little more proactive," she said breathlessly. "Like a long, hot shower, and then a warm, comfy bed."

"I might go along with that plan, but it all depends."

"On?" she asked, looking up into his dark brown eyes, giving in to the impulse to press a sucking kiss to the cleft of his chin.

"Well there's three things, really."

She pressed her lips together to avoid a smile. "First?"

"First, I get to join you in the shower," he said, leaning down to kiss the base of her throat, tongue darting out to trace the contour of her collar bone.

Chloe sucked in a sharp breath. "I suppose I can live with that demand, however agonizing it may be," she conceded.

Oliver made his way down her torso, lips brushing between the valley of her breasts down to her navel, causing Chloe to arch into him slightly as her thighs tensed with need.

"Second?" she prompted breathlessly.

"Second, I demand that there be no actual sleeping in this warm, comfy bed. I will accept cuddling as the bare minimum offering, but I expect you to offer up your body to my whims for at least the first seven hours of the night."

Chloe was beyond responding at this point, and only groaned her acquiescence.

Oliver breathed in deeply, inhaling her scent, lips still pressed to her lower stomach as he debated the next step. Chloe's hand eventually made its way into his hair, and he pulled it around to kiss her palm. His lips feathered over each finger and Chloe sighed luxuriously, groaning when he sucked her middle finger into his mouth.

"Third?" she murmured, making a feeble attempt to pull him back up her body so she could have his mouth on hers again.

But Oliver didn't move. Heart pounding in his chest, he pulled the small blue box out of his pocket. Chloe, whose head was laid back and eyes were still closed, didn't see the movement. "Third," he said softly, "we have to do something about this hand."

"Hmm?" she asked vaguely.

"It's missing something."

Chloe opened an eye and glanced at him confusedly. Her eye caught the sight of a sparkle and she caught her breath, sitting up to look at him properly.

Oliver gently climbed off her and kneeled on the floor beside her, still holding her hand in his. "Chloe Ann Sullivan–"

"Yes!"

Oliver gave a breathy laugh. "Chloe, I haven't even–"

"Yes!"

"Damn it, woman, let me finish."

"But yes!"

Oliver dragged her head down to his and kissed her hard. He released her and she was silent. "Good," he said. "Chloe Ann Sullivan," he repeated, sliding the ring onto her finger, "who I love so much and can't imagine what good thing I did to deserve: Will you consent to bring out the best in me for the rest of our lives, to always remind me when I'm being an idiot, to forever argue with me until I have no choice but to kiss you, and to let me love you senseless for as long as you're alive?"

Chloe could only sigh wistfully, tears in her eyes.

Oliver chuckled, rolling his eyes. He pressed his nose to hers, nudging her slightly. "This is the part where you say yes."

She laughed as well, capturing his lips for a long, lingering kiss, sighing deeply as she pulled away. "Yes," she whispered.

Oliver rose, gathering her in his arms, and lifting her up from the couch until she'd wrapped her legs around his waist. "Good. Consider my conditions met, then," he said, making her laugh.


End file.
